


Gertrude, Hamlet, and Emily Prentiss

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Drama, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-09
Updated: 2014-10-09
Packaged: 2018-02-20 11:15:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2426732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Thiswas what always happened when she let her heart defy her mind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Gertrude, Hamlet, and Emily Prentiss

**Author's Note:**

> written for the **mysterious letter** prompt.

Emily paced across the room, holding the folded piece of paper in her hand.She tried to calm down but nothing helped her to do that.She needed to get to a rational place.Jack was asleep in the other room; she did not want to wake him shouting.Hotch would be home soon and this needed an explanation.

Usually Emily wasn’t even there when Jack spent the night.Tonight Hotch needed to go back to Quantico.He didn’t want to but there was something about an old case, new evidence…maybe a guilty man was sitting on death row.He didn’t call Haley; there was no need to get her involved.Jack was sound asleep and did not tend to wake up in the middle of the night.So he called Emily, asked her for a favor.She came immediately and Hotch was off for an indeterminate amount of time.

He didn’t even try to hide the letter.Emily found it on the coffee table in the living room while trying to remember which remote worked his television.He obviously read it many times, the plain stationary was fading and the folds repeatedly done and undone.Emily couldn’t believe he just left it out in the open for anyone to see.Who wrote it?What did it mean to him?

At first, there was guilt in her for reading it at all, but it sat outside of the envelope.With each word, her stomach dropped; the dread she felt soon turned to anger and then rage.She didn’t even know how much time went by since first arriving there.All she could see were the words on the page and the color of anger behind her eyes.Emily cried, hating herself for giving into her emotions.

How could she be so dumb as to believe that Hotch might really love her?All this time, wooing her, saying things that sounded almost like heaven, and he was squirreling away love letters.Love letters probably written by his ex-wife.Damn him for making her drop her guard.This was always what happened when she let her heart defy her mind.

“What the hell is this?”

Emily jumped on him as soon as he walked through the door.Hotch was taken aback by her anger, evident though she hardly raised her voice.

“What?What happened?”

“This, you bastard.What's this?” she threw it at him and Hotch bent over to pick it up.

He recognized it immediately, though he opened the paper and read it once more.

_ Love of my life, _

_ I miss you and it has been so long since I've heard from you.I know the FBI keeps you busy and I am so proud of all you’ve become.Still, I want to be more of a part of your life.I know I can't change all that I am but I can't change how much I love you either.Why should I have to?Do you remember how close we used to be…no one could take your place in my heart?Other things have torn us asunder but there's never been a time when I haven’t loved you.You're hurting now, using that dangerous job to mask your pain.You don’t have to hide; I've experienced it too.We could use this ugly time to find our way back to each other.I have that hope Aaron.I will never give up that hope. _

__

_ Love always _

“Emily…” __

“Don’t even try it.”

“Are you going to let me explain?” Hotch asked.

“I think that letter explains itself.”

“It doesn’t.”

“Is it from Haley?”

“No.”

“Then who?Dammit!” Emily closed her eyes, running her hand over her face.“How could I have been so stupid?I wanted to believe in you and I did.”

“You're jumping to conclusions.You need to calm down so that we can talk.”

“I don’t want to talk to you ever again.Why don’t you talk to her if you're in such a chatty mood?”

“You're being irrational.I can understand, I know how this must look, but I swear to you it is not what you think.Take a deep breath and think about it.Have I ever lied to you?”

“You certainly never told me you were getting love letters.Does that count?”

“This is not a love letter.” Hotch said firmly.“Are you going to let me explain?”

“I'm going home.You can go to hell, and the next time you need a babysitter you can find your way back to her.”

“The letter is from my mother.” Hotch said when Emily reached the door.

She looked back at him and smirked.

“Damn Aaron, you must think I just fell off the turnip truck.Your mother?Considering how deceptive you can be, I think you can do better than that.”

“It’s true.”

“Your mother wrote that letter?”

“Yes.” He nodded.“Would you sit down please?I don’t know if I can make everything understandable but I can explain.”

“Swear to me.” Emily said.

“I swear.Please Emily; I swear on us.”

“I don’t know how much that means.”

“Then maybe you should just walk out the door.”

They stared at each other for a few moments in silence.Aaron gave up his stance and sat down on the couch.Damn, he was exhausted.No, he was exhausted before…now he was downright dead on his feet.All he thought about was getting home and curling up with Emily in bed.He was sure he could convince her to stay…there was nothing wrong with breaking the rules once in a while.Not only would he probably be sleeping alone tonight, it looked like it might be that way for a long time to come.His mother wasn’t even there and she was ruining things.

“I want to believe you so bad that my stomach hurts.” 

Hotch could hear the tears in her voice.He wanted to hold her in his arms and never let go.

“If I was cheating on you and there was evidence, do you think I would leave it on the living room table?There is no other woman, Emily.You have to choose to believe me or not.”

“I've heard it before.”

“Not from me.”

“From someone I trusted with my whole heart.My gut told me to walk away but when you love someone…”

“What is your gut saying right now?” Hotch asked.

“Run.But I can't.”

“My mother is um, a very unique woman and our relationship has always been…I don’t want to profile my mother.Here,” Hotch took his phone from his hip.“I’ll call her, I’ll call and she’ll tell you that she wrote the letter.”

“She doesn’t know me.” Emily was slowly making her way from the door back into the living room.“Fine, I believe you.”

“You don’t believe me and I won't rest until you do.I’ll just call her.”

“It’s after one in the morning.” Emily reasoned.

Hotch was not listening to her anymore.He pushed a number on his PDA and waited.

“Hi mama, I know it’s late and I'm sorry.”

“I don’t care about the time.” Amelia Hotchner-Preston replied.“Oh honey, how are you?”

“Good.I um, this is going to sound ridiculous…”

“I don’t care Aaron.What's the matter?”

“I have a friend; more than a friend really.”

“You have a lover?”

“Mama.”

“Aaron.” 

Her tone took him back to being thirteen.The feeling made Hotch cringe.It was too late to hang up now.

“She is more than that too.She found one of your letters and it upset her.”

“Why is she upset?”

“She doesn’t know much about our relationship and um…” Hotch took a deep breath.“Its late, I've been working, I need you to tell her that you wrote the letter.”

“Well put her on the telephone, love.”

Hotch held out the phone.Emily reluctantly took it from his hands.

“Hello.”

“What's your name, sweetheart?” Amelia asked.“Aaron didn’t even bother to tell me.”

“Emily Prentiss.Hello, Mrs. Hotchner.”

“It’s Mrs. Preston now, and this is an awfully strange way for us to meet.Aaron is the most magnificent man; he is so much better than his father turned out to be.But I guess you don’t need to know too much about that.”

“I guess not ma'am.”

“I write to him a lot.I miss him so much but old wounds don’t always heal.I never meant to break your heart or cause you to doubt him.He needs a strong woman…I still say a Southern woman but he’s probably too afraid of ending up with someone like me.” she laughed.“Do you love him?”

“Yes ma'am.”

“Then I suggest you hold on tight.He is as slippery as an eel, since the day he was born.I don't know you and while I would like to see that situation rectified, I am not sure it ever will be.Just take good care of him.He needs it more than he will ever say.”

“Yes ma'am.”

“Alright dear, you're shaken and I can hear the tension in your voice.I'm not a monster, no matter what Aaron tells you.”

“He hasn’t told me anything like that. I should let you go, it’s so late and I am sorry to have woken you with my stubbornness.”

“You're stubborn?There is hope for you two after all.Where are your people from?”

“My father is from Philadelphia.My mother was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama.”

“A southern girl.Where did she go to school?”

“Ole Miss; Kappa Kappa Gamma.”

“Oh, I like you.We must meet; we must persuade Aaron.”

“Um, that’s probably a conversation you two need to have.I shouldn’t get in the middle.”

“You're right.Put my wayward love back on the phone.Goodnight, Emily Prentiss.”

“Goodnight, Mrs. Preston.”

“I should let you go now.” Hotch said when he took the phone.“Is everything alright at home?”

“Just fine.Tug is always out on that damn boat but we are fine.He speaks of you, and Sean, with the fondest of hearts.”

“I know.I sent him a birthday card.”

“It’s up in his office.He is so proud of you…you need to come home and give him a hug.”

“Yes ma'am.”

“You say that but…”

“Mama, it’s really late.I love you, you know that I do.”

“I do.I love you too.You are the love of my life and that will never change.The next time you come home you bring my grandbaby and the lovely Emily Prentiss.”

“Yes ma'am.”

“I won't wait by the door Aaron.”

“I know that.Goodnight.”

“Night.”

He ended the phone call, sinking deeper into the couch.

“I'm sorry.” Emily whispered.

“For what?”

“All of this.”

“Well I'm sorry that my mother thinks of the two of us like Gertrude and Hamlet sometimes.Jesus,” he rubbed his eyes.“I don’t even know what time it is.”

“Really late.You woke your mother in the middle of the night…”

“So you could trust me.Because your trust is essential to this relationship.”

“It’s not my Southern roots?”

“Hell no.” Hotch laughed, but it was tired and mirthless.

“You know, when you talk to her, it comes out.”

“The accent?” he asked.

“Mmm hmm.”

“Because I feel like I'm starring in a Tennessee Williams play.Can we just go to bed…you're not allowed to leave tonight.”

“I wasn’t going to.”

“Oh you were going to.You were going to slam the door behind you too.”

“I wanted to believe you almost more than I've wanted anything in my life.I want you to be so different from all the others.I want to be right for a change.”

“C'mere.”

Hotch finally exhaled when she was in his arms.They held tight to each other, the light scent of her skin taking him back to his safe place.He had been out in the cold for a little while and it was scary.She was not the only one who wanted this to be right.There were all kinds of reasons it couldn’t be, not the least of which was working together everyday.

However, they seemed to defy those odds, somehow balancing the tightrope of personal and professional like Hotch didn’t think was possible.His mother wasn’t far off when she said he used his job to mask his pain.He could take that mask off when he and Emily were alone.It was difficult; Hotch was still trying to make sense of his instinct to let her in completely.He waited for the other shoe to drop because it always dropped.

“I love you, Aaron.”

“Say that again.”

“I love you.I was devastated when I read that letter.When you love someone you can't stand the idea of them not being everything you want them to be.”

“I love you too, but I'm not perfect.”

“Duh.” Emily laughed.“I don’t care about perfection.OK, I do, but when I'm with you, it goes away for a little while.With you I can embrace my flaws, your flaws, and the flaws we share.”

“Like overbearing Southern mothers?” he asked.

“Let’s go to bed.”

“You are going to get no argument out of me.”

Emily pulled him up from the couch, sliding her arm around his waist.They walked down the long hallway and looked in on Jack before going into the master bedroom.She started to undress him and that made Aaron smile.The art of undressing had become one of the little rituals he looked forward to when spending the night with her.

“Your mother wants to meet me.” Emily said, taking off his tie and then his dress shirt.Did he really need to put on his entire Hotch costume just to run to FBI Headquarters?

“I'm sure.”

“Well, you’ve met mine.”

“She’ll scare you away.”

“No,” Emily shook her head.She got Hotch down to his boxers and smiled.She wanted him naked but Jack was there.The boxers would have to do.“Now that I know what I'm facing, I’ll do just fine.It’s been a long night; we’ll talk about it some other time.”

She took off her lounge pants and they got into bed together.Hotch clicked off the lamp, plunging the room into darkness.He didn’t know when he was going to get to sleep tonight.The letter didn’t send Emily running screaming from the room and neither did his mother.Not yet anyway, Amelia was good at drawing people in.It was only when her vines were completely wrapped around a person that she slowly sucked the life from them.He would not let her do that to Emily.She never thought Haley was strong enough and maybe she was right, but Emily Prentiss would give her a run for her money.

“You're tense.” Emily said.

“A little bit.”

“Relax.”

“Easier said than done, Em.”

“I can take your mind off whatever is bothering you.”

“Believe me, I know you can.I think I need to think about this though.” Hotch said.

“I don’t want to sleep if you're not.”

“That’s why I love you.” He kissed her lips.“I'm going to fall asleep soon.I just need to come down some.Having you here helps.Now I know how to get you to stay when Jack spends the night.”

“A fight?That is not a good plan, Hotchner.Go back to the drawing board in the morning.Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.” He held her closer and closed his eyes.It would be a while, but his arms were around Emily so at least sleep would come.

 

***

  



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